Johnson Garden Day Nursery LimitedOfsted inspection, 28 Apr 2008

Johnson Garden Day Nursery Ltd Inspection report for early years provision

p.1

EY367141 Unique Reference Number 28 April 2008 Inspection date Linda Patricia Coccia Inspector

p.1

Johnson Garden Day Nursery, Burley Road, SITTINGBOURNE, Kent, ME10 1JL

p.1

Setting Address

01795 423577 Telephone number johnsongarden@tiscali.co.uk E-mail Johnson Garden Day Nursery Ltd Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care Type of care

p.1

Setting Address

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

p.1

ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

p.2

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

p.2

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

p.2

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

p.2

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are outstanding. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

p.2

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

p.2

WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Johnson Garden Day Nursery is run by Johnson Garden Day Nursery Ltd. It originally opened in 1959 and has re-registered in 2008. It operates from several rooms in a one storey building in Sittingbourne, Kent. A maximum of 59 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 08:00 to 18:00 for 51 weeks of the year. All children share access to a secure, enclosed, outdoor play area.

p.2

WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 95 children aged from three months to under eight years on roll. Of these, 43 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from a wide catchment area. The nursery is able to support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and also supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language.

p.2

WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs 17 staff. There are 16 staff, including the manager, who hold appropriate early years qualifications. There is one member of staff who is working towards a qualification. The nursery is a member of the Pre-School Learning Alliance. They also receive support from the Local Authority.

p.2

WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

p.2

Helping children to be healthy

The provision is outstanding. Children's health is promoted through an outstanding range of policies and procedures which are put into practise by staff. They protect children from cross infection, promote hygiene and help children understand about their bodily functions and self care. For example, babies have their own feeding bottles and cups and older children receive regular reminders about washing their hands, not only for toileting but throughout the day as they use the new low level sinks provided in the playrooms. Children are becoming more independent.

p.3

Helping children to be healthy

Children are offered an extensive range of snacks and meals which are healthy and nutritious. Dedicated and experienced catering staff cater exceptionally well for individual children. The staff are very proficient in ensuring the kitchen stays within Environmental Health guidelines and staff keep meticulous records. The nursery has been awarded the Swale Hygiene Award. Children self-select snacks and drinks from the choices provided each day, such as apples, raisins and crackers and choose between water and milk to drink. Children learn about healthy eating as they participate in food activities, see posters and have discussions with staff.

p.3

Helping children to be healthy

Babies and toddlers have access to lots of physical play equipment suitable for their ages, such as, baby gyms and walkers. Those that can move, crawl and toddle have lots of space in which to move around. The room is exceptionally well used as there is very little in the way of equipment to hinder the use of the floor space. The babies have their own delightful designated area. The toddlers access a small outdoor area which staff ensure is safe and secure for them. Older children enjoy lots of outdoor play as they free flow to the outdoor area throughout the day. An extensive selection of wheel toys, balls, small slides and play houses are available to them. Plenty of physical exercise also takes place indoors as the children dance and move to music. Children participate in excellent physical activities every day.

p.3

Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is outstanding. The children use three exceptionally child friendly play rooms within the nursery. These comprise of the baby room for children under two years, the tweeny room for children aged between two and three years and the pre-school room for children aged between three and five years. Although the babies tend to remain in their own room, the other children flow between the two rooms, only returning to their own rooms for registration.

p.3

Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There are an excellent range of procedures available to help children stay safe. They are learning about safety, both their own and other people's. For example, one child, whizzing past on his bike, reassured a staff member that he would make sure he wouldn't ride into anyone. Children are also very aware of what they would do in an emergency. During a general conversation between a staff member and a group of children of various ages, the staff member quizzed the children on how they would leave the building in an emergency, how they might call the fire brigade and what the alarm sounded like. The children animatedly gave appropriate responses, proving that they would be able to keep themselves safe in an emergency. Staff rigorously record and evaluate every drill. The provider has carried out a full fire safety audit and all visitors to the premises have to read and sign the fire drill procedures. The toys and environment are

p.3

Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

fully risk assessed on an annual basis but staff carry out daily assessments of their rooms and equipment. Children are cared for in an exceptionally safe environment.

p.3

Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 The nursery has an excellent written Safeguarding Children policy, which is in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board's procedures. Staff are fully aware of the nursery's internal referral procedures and discuss any concerns with the nursery's appointed child protection officer. The policy is exceptionally clear about keeping parents informed of any concerns. Managers have all completed Safeguarding Children training and have cascaded the information down to staff. Further training is planned. Children's well-being is exceptionally well promoted.

p.3

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. All children are welcomed warmly into the setting. Staff animatedly talk to children about their home lives and families and befriend children who are new to the setting. All children have excellent interaction with staff and laugh and joke as they work and play together. Staff happily join in play when requested by the children and always offer children alternative play opportunities during adult led activities. The atmosphere is wonderfully relaxed but very busy.

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The staff in the baby and tweeny rooms make excellent use of the Birth to three matters framework as they plan and evaluate activities to ensure each child reaches it's full potential. Staff in the baby room encourage children to become skilful communicators as they verbalise actions and mimic children who can only gurgle and coo. Babies become competent learners as they self select from the extensive range of toys and activities, all stored appropriately at child height or on the floor and all children have the opportunity to develop their senses through craft and music. The children in the tweeny room have excellent opportunities to extend their play as they work closely with the children in the pre-school room. They learn from the older children as they copy their actions handling equipment and learn appropriate responses to routine directions from staff. Children are exceedingly happy and very well cared for.

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is outstanding. The funded children are all making excellent progress towards the early learning goals because staff have an excellent understanding of the Foundation Stage and how young children learn. Staff complete initial assessments on the children, either from scratch or using the Birth to three matters framework profiles, which are passed on from the previous room staff. They plan an overall yearly plan of activities which are then broken down into weeks. Currently, staff are experimenting with a new method of planning, which gives a more detailed assessment of the children in line with the stepping stones. The new method includes differentiation within activities for three and four year olds. Staff are very flexible in their use of equipment and room space, which allows the children to explore the environment more fully. 'Snap shot' observations are carried out on children every day and

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

transferred to their individual records. Children's 'next steps' are then identified, which in turn are used to inform the planning.

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are exceedingly interested in the range of activities on offer and show confidence as they move freely around the rooms, independently selecting their own play materials. They need very little prompting to talk about their families and events that have happened to them and they act these out in the role play area and home corner.

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children can choose to play outside on the variety of equipment which helps them develop their physical skills. They ride bikes, throw balls through hoops and build their own dens with large cardboard boxes. They can opt to stay inside and do stretching exercises, do action rhymes or dance and move to music. Whatever they choose, they are becoming more confident in their

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 own physical abilities. Individual play trays allow children to experience activities on their own which would normally be only available as a group. For example, sand play.

p.4

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children play with a variety of push button type toys, including toy computers and a musical play desk. They sing into the microphone and like to control the volume of the amplification to their voices. One four year old demonstrated how she used her toy laptop. She initiated a programme and was able to click the attached mouse. She selected a game in which she had to feed bigger and smaller bones to the dog. Another three year old child used a play office and spent many minutes chatting on the phone. The new main computer is a great hit with the children, some of whom show exceptional skill in the use of the programmes.

p.5

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Both three and four year olds are very familiar with mathematical shapes as they use them a lot in their craft work. The three year olds can easily identify simple shapes such as circles and triangle. The older children are suitably challenged by staff as they are asked to identify more complex shapes such as hexagons. Children learn simple mathematical language, such as more, less, how many and suchlike, as they are regularly challenged by staff. Occasionally harder words, such as symmetrical, are used by staff. For example, when one child folded her painting in half she watched intently as staff opened it for her and pointed out that she had made a symmetrical pattern.

p.5

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children produce a range of interesting craft work. They paint and draw and use a wealth of textures and materials to stick with. The children have helped construct a flower, birthday board. They can now easily relate the time of the year to their names on the board. Children like to write their own names on their pictures, and make shopping lists in the home corner. The younger children are beginning to recognise the letters in their own names. They love to read each other stories and are adept at making up the stories from the pictures. The older children recognise the written word all around them. One child pointed to another child's placemat at snack time and commented to staff that the other child had the same letters as him. The children thoroughly enjoy their learning and have excellent learning opportunities.

p.5

Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding. Children see an excellent range of positive images of equality every day at the nursery. They have access to an excellent range of books which provide information about different faiths and cultures. Posters, displayed in the entrance area, show able and non-able bodied children working and playing together. There are also some excellent photographs of the nursery children learning Makaton and signing the words they have learnt. Children are also encouraged to use the role play clothes regardless of their gender. Again, photographic evidence shows boys wearing tutu's and girls being police officers. Children with learning difficulties and disabilities can be catered for, although none currently attend. Excellent procedures offer support to the whole family, including disabled parents. The nursery has two fully trained SENCO's and the provider has attended inclusion training. All children are included.

p.5

Helping children make a positive contribution

Children are very well behaved and extremely cooperative with staff. They really enjoy helping to look after and clean their toys and readily help with clearing toys away at tidy-up time. Staff insist they rarely have to use any behaviour management strategies other than discussing behaviour with the individual child concerned. Children receive lots of praise and encouragement for their behaviour, which is then affirmed to others. They are very polite to each other and staff, saying please and thank you, and they readily share their toys. Children have a very good understanding of rules and behaviour boundaries.

p.5

Helping children make a positive contribution

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Children show concern for each other, usually without prompting but sometimes at the behest of staff. For example, toddlers attempt to cuddle each other if they cry, and the older children hug the younger ones to make them feel happier. They are very happy to help a younger child with an activity. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

p.5

Helping children make a positive contribution

Parents receive an excellent range of written information regarding their child's time at nursery. A colourful, eye-catching prospectus ensures parents receive initial information, which is followed up with their own copies of policies and procedures. The nursery also has a new website. Separate information regarding the Birth to three matters framework is also given out. Colourful displays on notice boards, photographic evidence of what children do and a regular newsletter ensures that the nursery policy of working with parents is achieved. Parents report that the staff are extremely supportive and approachable. All parents agreed that they would recommend the nursery to other prospective parents. Children benefit from excellent continuity of care.

p.6

Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents is good. The parents of funded children reported that they had a good understanding of the Foundation Stage through the displays in the rooms and the written activity information provided. Parents state that they are regularly involved in their children's learning as they bring in items for projects and listen to reports from their children about what they are doing. However, the nursery does not promote parents being involved in their children's learning through identified activities, which would help parents understand how their children learn. All parents know their child's Key-worker and can approach them to enquire about their child's progress at any time. Parents know that staff carry out observations on their children and they get a regular report on their progress.

p.6

Organisation

The organisation is outstanding. The nursery has an excellent range of staffing procedures, including rigorous recruitment and vetting, discipline and induction procedures. The provider encourages staff to job share, which is a very positive experience for children and staff and which allows for emergency cover and staffing ratios to always be maintained. Staff are very experienced and many have worked in the setting for a number of years. All are qualified to at least NVQ level 2, but most are NVQ level 3. Any certificates they receive for attending training and workshops are displayed in the entrance area. Staff have regular appraisals. Therefore, children benefit as they are cared for by trained, experienced staff.

p.6

Organisation

The nursery's outstanding operational plan is readily available to parents. It includes regulatory policies, such as a lost child and an uncollected child policy, as well as a wealth of other information, such as health and safety and settling children in. Other regulatory paperwork such as accident records and attendance records are all completed meticulously. Children's records are very well maintained confidentially and stored in lockable cupboards. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides

p.6

Organisation

Leadership and management is good. The provider has clear aims for the setting, which are included in the prospectus. She is constantly reviewing practice and assessing activities by using reflective practise methods and acting on suggestions from her staff. She has a hands on approach with the children and is able to assess staff performance easily as she joins in activities in the different rooms. She implicitly trusts her staff and is not afraid to try new methods which they may suggest. For example, one staff member has attended a workshop on

p.6

Organisation

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Heuristic play. She is very enthusiastic about this method and is being fully supported by the provider to cascade the information to others.

p.6

Organisation

Toys and equipment are regularly assessed and replaced as necessary. Staff submit regular 'wish lists', which the provider tries to act upon as soon as possible. She has embarked on an improvement plan for the building and is replacing all external windows and doors. This has to be done slowly at weekends so as not to disrupt the smooth running of the nursery.

p.7

Organisation

The provider closely monitors the delivery of the Foundation Stage by her senior supervisor in the pre-school room and is aware that she could do more to promote parent's involvement in children's learning. A good management team has evolved over a number of years, whose sole aim is to ensure that young children have the best start in life.

p.7

Complaints since the last inspection

Since registration there have been no complaints made to Ofsted that required the provider or Ofsted to take any action in order to meet the National Standards.

p.7

Complaints since the last inspection

The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

p.7

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

p.7

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are outstanding. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

p.7

THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

p.7

The quality and standards of the care

No recommendations for improvement are made because the quality and standards of care are outstanding.

p.7

The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • develop methods to increase parents involvement with their children's learning at home

p.7

The quality and standards of the nursery education

set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.7

The quality and standards of the nursery education

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

p.7